Close to the Bank of England, at 7 Lothbury, is this extraordinary building, looking as though it had been transplanted from the Grand Canal in Venice.

Designed by George Somers Clark, and completed in 1866, it was originally the head office of the General Credit and Discount Company. Later occupants included Speyer Brothers, the National Bank of Australasia, the Sea Insurance Co, stockbrokers Laurie Milbank & Co, and the Overseas Bankers’ Club.

Today it’s a residential building with luxury apartments. For a look inside, search for 7 Lothbury in the property sites.

The feature which is especially Venetian is the tracery in the first floor gothic windows. Have a look at an actual Venetian gothic example below, the celebrated Ca’d’Oro. Several other buildings in London are sometimes described as “Venetian gothic”, but this is the only convincing example I’ve seen. Do let me know if there are any others.

*Ca’ d’Oro, Venice, 1421 - 43.* Source: wga.hu

Here is 7 Lothbury as originally conceived by the architect. The main entrance was on Tokenhouse Yard, but was moved to the narrower front on Lothbury around 1918-19.

*Original design for 7 Lothbury. Source:* https://www.archiseek.com/central-credit-and-discount-companys-oeiaces-lothbury/

Today, Tokenhouse Yard, where the main entrance was originally situated, is a narrow single-lane road, barely wide enough for a car.

*The corner of 7 Lothbury and Tokenhouse Yard.*

*The corner of 7 Lothbury and Tokenhouse Yard. Source:* Google maps

And, just by the way, here is an even more convincing example of Venetian gothic outside Venice. It’s the Dogenhof in Vienna, close to where I used to lodge when attending conferences in the days when I was a radiologist.

*Dogenhof in Vienna. Source:* meinbezirk.at

References:

Bradley, Simon, and Nikolaus Pevsner, editors. The City of London. 1. publ. by Yale Univ. Press, Penguin Books, 2002.

Prockter, Adrian. ‘Lothbury Building at No 7’. Know Your London, 9 Oct. 2014.

1868 – General Credit and Discount Company, 7 Lothbury, London , Archiseek.Com. 31 Mar. 2013.

‘7 Lothbury’. Geometry & Silence. Accessed 26 Jul. 2025.

7 Lothbury, EC2. Historic England

A Venetian palace in the City of London

I’m now a City of London Guide